iPad mini pictures and hands-on

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Yep, we've got our hands-on on the new 7.9-inch iPad mini and here it is in all its glory.

We're currently in San Jose, CA, where Apple has just announced several new devices, including a surprise iPad 4 and this, the new, much-rumoured iPad mini.

First impressions are that it is indeed light. At just over 308g, it's considerably lighter than a conventional iPad, thanks mainly to using much less glass in its construction - and that means you're going to enjoy reading books on it a lot better too. It's also extremely thin, only 7.2mm.

However, the most surprising aspect is that it isn't just a smaller iPad, the bezel is thinner so the whole device fits nicely in the palm even though it features a screen that's almost 8-inches. That makes reading websites a lot easier because there is more screen real estate. However, it is strange considering that's not what Apple told us was best for the iPhone 5.

It's hard to judge the resolution of the screen itself, which harks back to the original iPad and iPad 2 at 1024 x 768, but it's interesting to note that Apple has resisted the urge to adopt a 16:9 or 16:10 display, and stick to the 4:3 aspect ratio as found on the rest of the iPad family.

This is to appease developers, it seems. And at least it means you can rest assured that all iPad apps on iTunes will work straight off the bat, and a quick cycle through the apps installed on the iPad minis we played with shows this shouldn't be a problem.

Our only other impression from such a short amount of play time (these things are popular, after all) is that it's extremely responsive, and looks quite cool behind its mini Smart Cover. Very handbag friendly.

The iPad mini will be available for pre-order from 26 October, with the Wi-Fi-only models shipping from 2 November. The "cellular" versions will ship from two weeks after.